The thaw between the Atlanta Braves and the man who defeated Cobb County Commission Chairman Tim Lee last week may have already begun.
O’Hayer asked former Marine colonel Mike Boyce, who won nearly two-thirds of the vote last week, whether he had heard from the front office of the baseball team.
From a quick transcription of the long-form interview, which can be found here, begins with O'Hayer wondering if Boyce has yet heard from the Braves:
"I think it's important that they sit down and see me face-to-face, and see me for the professional that I am, the experiences that I have. To give them the confidence that – we're going to move forward on not just the stadium, but Battery Park. I'm committed to transforming that [U.S.] 41 corridor, and helping them do that."
O'Hayer: "Should the commission get rid of the bans on parking lots within a half-mile of the stadium?"
Boyce: "I think they've probably done that already."
O'Hayer: "They've suspended [the ordinance]. Should they revoke it""
Boyce: "The answer is, like everything I do, we shouldn't make any decisions until we get public input. So clearly they've got enough of a pushback to have suspended it. Now let's resume the discussions and find out what's the middle ground here."
O'Hayer: "Do you have a position yourself, though?"
Boyce: "Yeah, I'm kind of leaning toward the fact that I believe in capitalism and I believe in entrepreneurship. I think we should encourage businesses, small and large, to derive as much capital as possible from the capital that they own…."
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The New York Times had a Sparta dateline yesterday in a story illustrating what's changed in states like Georgia since the Supreme Court struck down key parts of the Voting Rights Act a few years back:
...But the purge of Sparta voters is precisely the sort of electoral maneuver that once would have needed Justice Department approval before it could be put in effect. In Georgia and all or part of 14 other states, the 1965 Voting Rights Act required jurisdictions with histories of voter discrimination to receive so-called preclearance before changing the way voter registration and elections were conducted.
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At least he's acknowledging the possibility that Georgia could turn blue. The re-election campaign of U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson is looking for a bit of a fund-raising bounce off today's visit to Atlanta by President Barack Obama. The headline: "Don't Let Democrats Take Georgia."
But it's the Photoshopped image that grabs you:
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We could soon have a Mike Pence visit to Georgia - to play defense. The New York Times reported that Donald Trump's narrow path to a November victory means he must win in Pennsylvania (which no Republican has won since 1988), Ohio and Florida while keeping North Carolina in the GOP column. But it also includes this passage about the Indiana governor's plans:
Robin Hayes, the chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, said he anticipated that Mr. Pence, an evangelical Christian, would visit the state often to speak about "North Carolina Judeo-Christian values." Mr. Hayes, a former member of Congress and a friend of Mr. Pence's, said it was essential for Mr. Trump to defend Republicans' grip on North Carolina in order to win nationally.
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Pakistani Muslim lawyer Khizr Khan, whose son died a soldier's death in Iraq, built on his appearance at the Democratic National Convention on Sunday. He appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" and put a stark label on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump:
"He is a black soul, and this is totally unfit for the leadership of this country," Khan said. "The love and affection that we have received affirms that our grief -- that our experience in this country has been correct and positive. The world is receiving us like we have never seen. They have seen the blackness of his character, of his soul."
Khan also said he hoped Trump's family would "teach him some empathy."
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On CBS' "Face the Nation," Paul Manafort, campaign manager for the Donald Trump campaign, defended his candidate against charges of insensitivity:
"Mr. Trump and all of us give him our sympathy and empathy for the loss of his son. I mean, that was a real tragedy," Manafort said. ... "The issue is not Mr. Khan and Donald Trump, the issue really is radical Islamic jihad and the risk to the American homeland. That's the issue."
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U.S. Rep. John Lewis apparently had a chance encounter with Khan on Friday. The Atlanta Democrat invoked one of his old civil rights mantras to describe the dad's stand against Trump - #goodtrouble:
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You knew it was coming at some point: The New York Post has put a circa 1995 nude photo of Melania Trump on its cover.
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We've already told you about the way Democrats in Philly appropriated the ideas and name of Ronald Reagan. In every column like that, some material ends up on the cutting room floor.
One item left out of Sunday’s column was a notation from GOP pollster Whit Ayres, who said surveys have begun to show some sharp separation, in the double digits, between the Trump brand and downballot Republicans. Ticket-splitting unseen among GOP voters since the 1980s is in the offing, he said.
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Arizona U.S. Sen. John McCain came out with a detailed statement this morning searing Trump for his attack of the Khan family. The former POW, Republican nominee and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee distanced himself from Trump but stopped short of taking back his endorsement:
"I cannot emphasize enough how deeply I disagree with Mr. Trump's statement. I hope Americans understand that the remarks do not represent the views of our Republican Party, its officers, or candidates."
He went on to laud Humayun Khan's service. He then challenged Trump "to set the example for what our country could and should represent":
"Arizona is watching. It is time for Donald Trump to set the example for our country and the future of the Republican Party. While our Party has bestowed upon him the nomination, it is not accompanied by unfettered license to defame those who are the best among us."
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Keith Mason, former chief of staff for Gov. Zell Miller, was in Philadelphia last week. Over the weekend, he pointed us to an endorsement – however reluctant – of Hillary Clinton by Caroline McCain, granddaughter of the U.S. senator and 2008 GOP nominee:
But that night as he spoke, and he talked about American exceptionalism, and he talked about hope, and he talked about ingenuity and the resilience of the American people, he spoke to me. He reminded me of the choice before me.
He could have pointed blame at the GOP for enabling Trump's rise. He could have taken party leadership to task for falling in line behind Trump. But he didn't. He instead presented the election as a choice between democracy and [a] demagogue. He gave Republicans the option to abandon Trump rather than blaming them for his rise.
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